Combined wooden sheathing and lath



(No Model.)

O.R.DAHL. COMBINED WOODEN SHEATHING AND LATH- No. 551,112. Patented Dec. 10,1895.

v Yl/inesses ANDREW B.GRAHAM4PHOTU-UTHQWASHINGION. UL

UNITED STATES PATENT FEIcE.

OLE ROBERT DAHL, OF SEATTLE, \VASHINGTON.

COMBINED WOODEN SHEATHING AND LATH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 551,112, dated December 10, 1895.

Application filed April 6, 1895.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, OLE ROBERT DAHL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Seattle, in the county of King and- State of WVashington, have invented a new and useful Improvement in a Combined Wooden Sheathing and Lath; and I do hereby declare that the following specification, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings and letters of reference marked thereon, is a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, which will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to the building material known as sheathing-laths, which. are made of boards or culls provided with grooves in their surface to clinch the mortar when plastered on. Said sheathing-laths being nailed to the studdings, joists, or strips of wood in brick walls take the place of common laths, and to afford greater strength in large frame buildings are nailed on the studdings diagonally.

The object of my invention is to overcome all the defects in other sheathing-laths heretofore patented in which I have discovered the following difficulties: \Vith the so-called dovetailed or wedge-shaped grooves in sheathing-laths the grooves cannot be cut deep enough to prevent swelling, bulging, or shrinking of lath, cannot be made of knotty cheap lumber without tearing or breaking, and hence too expensive, plasterers have difficulty in sufficiently filling the grooves with mortar when plastering 011 ceilings, and the clinches are weakest where they should be strongest. I also find that all sheathing-laths have defective joints, some have the tongue and groove,which is a waste of lumber, and water from the wet mortar runs into the grooved part, which causes swelling, bulging, and cracking of plaster on the wall. All the other sheathing-laths admit water running through the joints or are not so constructed as to admit of swelling of laths without bulging, and

are not provided with such arabbet for mortar that will bind the lath-sections together and make a firm joint.

The novelty of my invention by which I overcome the aforesaid defects consists in the grooves or channels cut in the lumber in a Serial No. 545,919. (No model.)

principle and presents an end view with narrow sheathing-laths.

Like letters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views.

S represents the board or strip of lumber about an inch thick or less in the rough and of any desirable width, which may be dressed on one side and serves as sheathing in which one or more of the double cuts or grooves 19 and b are cut or sawed longitudinally in-the face of said board or sheathing to form rabbets for clinching the plaster. I One edge of said board or sheathing is cut or dressed as represented by the letters 0, c and c and the other edge as at d, (1 and d It will be seen that each edge is provided with three specific cuts made as follows: The rear cut in lower edge of board (represented by c) is a concave out about three-eighths of an inch wide, for the purpose hereinafter explained. The middle cut (represented by 0 is about three-sixteenths of an inch wide and is made with parallel sides, which are parallel with face of lath and about one-fourth of an inch deep. This cut is made for a cleat to hold and clinch the plaster. Cut represented by c is about five-siXteenths of an inch wide from the face of lath extending to cut 0 and preferably should be made with a bevel forming an acute angle with face of lathe to pre vent any water from the wet plaster on the wall from running through the joint. It can, however, be made at right angles with face of lath, but being made on such bevel as indicated in drawing Fig. 2 it also assists in keying the plaster on ceilings. The beveled cut in the rear upper edge of the board (represented by (l) is made about three-eighths of an inch wide or exactly of the same width as the concave cut 0 of the lower edge. The cut represented by d is made in the board near the middle of the upper edge and is about five-sixteenths of an inch wide. It is made with a slant or curve at the rear of said out, where it forms an acute angle with cut d, and at front of said out (Z next to cut represented in drawings by (1 it is parallel with face of lath. Being made about three-sixteenths or one-fourth of an inch deeper than the cut represented by (Z it affords a strong key for clinching the plaster. hit (Z is about threesixteenths of an inch wide from the face of the lath to cut (Z and can be made at right angles with the face of lath, but the bevel with blunt edge or obtuse angle at face of lath and acute angle formed with cut (Z as shown in the drawings, is preferable.

\Vhen two such strips of sheathing, thus made into lathing to serve the double purpose of sheathing and lath, are properly placed together with lower rear cut in board, as represented by c, abutting the upper rear cut of adjoining board, as represented by cl, the rabbet g is formed, which makes a strong clinch for plaster. There being a curve or slant at the rear of said rabbet g the grooves or cleats formed by cuts a and d are easily filled with mortar and when filled serve to clinch the plaster in said rabbet g and also to bind the two laths together to resist any disturbing force.

The cut (1 may be made with more or less slant or curve at rear of said out, the principle being to give sufficient slant or curve at rear of groove to easily fill said rabbet g with plaster.

The concave cut 0 (or angular cut, as in Fig. 3 of the drawings) at the rear lower end of the lath is so made to provide a minimum edge of wood to meet the beveled edge (1 of the rear upper edge of lath, thus forming joint between lath-sections which will admit of dry sheathing-lath swelling without bulging at the contact with the wet mortar. The rear edge of said cut a should be made so it will come lower when in place on the wall than the inside edge or contact-edge of said concave out c, that meets the beveled edge (I on the rear upper edge of adjoining board.

It will thus be seen that rain from outside wall cannot run through the joint, and yet because of the corresponding greater slant of the beveled edge d there is a small opening at rear of lath-sections, as represented in the drawings by the letter a,,which opening will admit of swelling on the minimum meeting edges of the rear cuts 0 and d. The width of the cuts 0, c 0 d, (1 and d is estimated at right angles with the face of lath.

The bevel 0 can be made with blunt edge on face of lath, as shown in Fig. 3, when deemed necessary to give more strength to the clinch of mortar at the edges 011 face of lath where clinches are most liable to break, and for the same reason the cut (Z is made with as much slant as possible, giving additional width to the rabbet at outside or face of lath.

third of thickness of lath, and is cut by a saw about three-eighths of an inch thick.

The cut b is narrow and deep, made by a saw about three-sixteenths of an inch thick, or about half the width of cut I), and is cut from two-thirds to three-fourths through the board. It is cut deep to provide against the liability of shrinking or warping of sheathing-lath and to provide a space for air, the more easily to plaster, and it is cut with a thin saw to prevent breaking the board in the manufacture, especially, of knotty cheap lumber. Groove g thus formed is provided with the cleats e and e for effectually clinching the mortar, and in general this groove resembles the lower part of a boot, the short out 1) representing the heel.

The cut or channel 12 should be cut on as great an angle as possible to give the best clinch for plaster on ceilings, and the saw to out said channel 12 can be set so as to bevel the cleat c on face of lath, as in Fig. 3, which will make groove 9 fully one-half inch wide on face of lath and stronger for heavy plaster. It is not intended to entirely fill the channel 12 with mortar, but only sufficiently to get a clinch 011 cleat 0 It will be seen that owing to the slant at the rear of cut 1) toward out if and of the extra space at the rear of cut 12 for air mortar will easily enter said cut 11 to form a reliable clinch on cleat e, which with clinch on cleat e and the rabbet g gives the best of clinches for the mortar. Hence in all details of structure of my invention all the objections to sheathing-laths have been overcome.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and useful, and desire to secure by Letters Patent under this specification, is

1. An improved sheathing-lath or plastering strip having one edge dressed with three specific cuts as represented herein by c, c and and the opposite edge also dressed with three distinct cuts as indicated by (l, d and d as herein fully described which gives the rabbet g when two such lath-sections are properly placed in position on the wall or ceiling,said rabbet 9 being provided with the two cleats, formed by the cuts (Z and c for clinching plaster and the projecting bevels d and c ,substantially as described and shown.

2. An improved sheathing-lath or plastering lath with obliquely cut channels of opposite inclination crossing each other,one of said cuts or channels, b, being wide and shallow, the other, 11 narrow and deep,-providing a space for air at rear of plaster in b said channels forming a groove for plaster said groove being provided with two cleats, e and o for keying the plaster of which 6 is near the face of lath and 6 about one-eighth to three-sixteenths of an inch from the face of lath with blunt edge immediately in front on face of lath to give strength to clinch of mortar,substantially as specified and shown.

3. A lath or sheathing having at its lower edge when in position on the wall a beveled out about five-sixteenths of an inch wide from face of lathforming an acute angle with face of lath as represented in drawings by the reference letter immediately back of this cut and about the middle of edge of board a deep cut, represented in drawings by 0 about one-fourth of an inch deep and threesixteenths of an inch wide with parallel sides which are parallel with face of lath, and back of thisat rear edge of said lath a concave out about three-eighths of an inch wide; the upper edge of said lath or sheathing having at its rear a beveled out forming an obtuse angle with back of lath and being about threeeighths of an inch wide,represented in drawings by 61; near the middle of said upper edge of lath a deep out about five-sixteenths of an inch wide-made with a curve at the rear and forming an acute angle with cut cl as represented by 01 in drawings; and, in front, near the face of lath, a out about three-siXteent-hs of an inch wide rep- 1 resented by (1 and can be made at an angle not less than a right angle with face of lath, substantially as shown and for the purposes set forth.

4. An improved sheathing-lath with the cuts, channels and cleats for plastern1ade in the face and edges of a board longitudinally with the grain and providing the rab* bets, g and 9 with the concave out o and beveled cut d at each joint, to provide two minimum contacts, or abutting edges and the opening a at the rear of lath-sections,- giving a joint that allows the boards to swell without bulging and yet one through which water cannot run from either side,substantially as specified, and shown forthe purposes set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

OLE ROBERT DAHL.

Witnesses ALEXANDER THOMPSON, WILLIAM COLLIER. 

